Record-Breaking Week For Digital SalesA record-breaking 55.74 million digital songs were downloaded during the week ending Dec. 30, equaling the single-largest download sales week ever, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The figures helped spur overall digital song download sales to a record 1.336 billion for 2012, up 5 percent compared to 2011. Additionally, a record 48 songs on Billboard's Digital Songs chart sold more than 100,000 downloads last week, with Taylor Swift's "I Knew You Were Trouble" at No. 1 with 582,000 downloads sold.

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Trouble In Paradise For Pop Star RainPop star Rain is reportedly having some trouble in love, and with the South Korean military. The Korean pop star, who is also a member of the South Korean army, was caught fraternizing with actress Kim Tae-hee while on duty, raising questions that entertainers may be receiving special favors during their military service, questions that the country's Ministry of National Defense denies. Details on the punishment Rain will receive were not revealed, but raining on the pop star's love parade seems to be punishment enough.

2013 GRAMMY Nominees Album Debuts At No. 4The 2013 GRAMMY Nomineesalbum debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200, selling 41,000 units, marking the series' 12th Top 10 debut. Released Jan. 22 by The Recording Academy's GRAMMY Recordings and Capitol Records, the album highlights artists and songs nominated for the 55th Annual GRAMMY Awards and is available at digital retailers such as Amazon and iTunes, with a portion of the proceeds benefitting MusiCares and the GRAMMY Foundation.

U.S. Digital Sales, UK Sales Up in JanuaryU.S. track equivalent album sales posted a 14 percent year-over-year increase for the first four weeks of 2013, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Total sales of digital albums are up 19.3 percent, and digital track sales are up 3.3 percent. In related news, UK music sales increased 11.6 percent in the first four weeks of 2013, according to Official Charts Company data. The UK's Entertainment Retailers Association attributes the sales increase to Hilco's recent acquisition of entertainment retailer HMV's debt.

YouTube To Offer Subscription Service?YouTube will launch a new feature in the coming months that will allow several of its partners to charge a subscription fee for their content, according to sources reported by Billboard.biz. The partnership would split proceeds from subscriptions between YouTube and respective partners. Additional details were not provided, but the report states it's unlikely YouTube will transform into a pay-for-play service in the immediate future.

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Fan Evicted For Blasting Spice GirlsDon't ask your landlord what he/she really, really wants … you might get evicted. Nottingham, England, resident Gavin Townroe was reportedly asked to vacate his residence after playing the Spice Girls' "Viva Forever" at a spicy-hot volume. Townroe was initially given an anti-social behavior order after a complaint from a neighbor, who had to take a sick day from work due to lack of sleep as a result of the loud music. Townroe was subsequently given an eviction notice and must be out of his apartment by Feb. 4. "As well as the Spice Girls, it was different music too," said Townroe neighbor Salah Alsayed. "Sometimes it would happen at 7 [or] 8 o'clock in the morning. I don't mind the Spice Girls, but not at that time in the morning." It sounds as if it's we're not living in a spice world after all.

Record Store Day Releases Announced, Track Sales Down In 2013GRAMMY winners the Black Keys, Bon Jovi, David Bowie, Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, Mumford & Sons, and the Roots are among the more than 200 artists set to release Record Store Day exclusiveson April 20. The list features a combination of new music, EPs, vinyl singles, and rarities. Record Store Day Ambassador Jack White will release a 10th anniversary double-vinyl edition of the White Stripes' GRAMMY-winning album, 2003's Elephant. In related music retail news, track sales are down 2 percent through March 15, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Digital albums have shown a 9 percent year-over-year increase through March 15.

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Kimye Goes North WestInspired by his last name and a geographical direction, GRAMMY winner Kanye West and girlfriend Kim Kardashian are rumoredto be in love with the name North for their expected child. That would make the child's name North West, arguably the most buzzed-about baby name since Blue Ivy, the daughter of Beyoncé and Jay-Z. No word yet on North's middle name but our suggestion is Mr. West's nickname, Yeezy.

U.S. Album Sales Down In 2012U.S. album sales fell 4.4 percent from 2011 after posting their first gain since 2004 last year, according to Nielsen SoundScan. CD Sales dropped 13.5 percent to 193.4 million units while digital album sales grew by 14.1 percent. Digital tracks increased 5.1 percent to 1.34 billion units, and vinyl albums dropped 17.7 percent to 4.55 million units. Overall recorded music sales (album sales plus track equivalent albums) declined 1.8 percent in 2012. Adele's 21 was the biggest-selling album of 2012 with 4.4 million units sold, and Gotye's "Somebody That I Used To Know" featuring Kimbra was the top-selling digital song with sales of 6.8 million units.

Universal Music Group Tops Market ShareUniversal Music Group'spurchase of EMI in September 2012 helped the company earn a 32.8 percent market share in 2012, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Sony Music Entertainment had a market share of 29.1 percent, and Warner Music Group saw a small increase in market share last year to 18.9 percent in 2012 from 18.7 percent in 2011. According to Billboard, independents had more than 30 percent of the market if counted by label ownership.

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Men's Wearhouse Apologizes to Megadeth's Dave MustaineOrdering gifts online during the holidays can be a major pain even for hardcore rock stars like Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine, who received an apology from Men's Wearhouse on Jan. 2 after he lambasted the company's delivery service on Facebook. Mustaine claimed the men's retailer failed to uphold their two-day delivery guarantee for a gift certificate he ordered for his tour manager before Christmas. "I really think that it sucks when people make false claims, that they don't care to make good on a problem that is clearly their fault," wrote Mustaine on his Facebook page. "I for one, will never set foot in a Men's Warehouse [sic], even for shelter from a blizzard. I absolutely GUARANTEE it." We're not sure if Mustaine's tour manager ever received his gift certificate or purchased a suit from Men's Wearhouse, but if he does, Mustaine's likely guaranteed to be enraged every time he sees it.

Songwriters Hall Announces 2013 InducteesThe Songwriters Hall of Fame has announced its 2013 class of inductees: GRAMMY winners Steven Tyler and Joe Perry (Aerosmith); MickJones and Lou Gramm (Foreigner); Tony Hatch, Holly Knight and J.D. Souther. The inductees will be honored at the 44th Annual Induction and Awards Dinner on June 13, 2013, in New York.

Jennifer Hudson Added To Oscar LineupGRAMMY winner Jennifer Hudson will join fellow Oscar winners Russell Crowe and Catherine Zeta-Jones for a tribute to movie musicals at the 85th Academy Awards on Feb. 24 in Los Angeles. Additional GRAMMY winners set to perform at this year's ceremony include Adele, Norah Jones and Barbra Streisand.

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Woman Hears "How Much Is That Doggie In The Window" On RepeatSometimes, you just can't get a song out of your head, but for three years straight? That's what a woman in Essex, England recently told British tabloid The Sun. Hearing "How Much Is That Doggie In The Window" on repeat is apparently the result of a rare form of Tinnitus for Susan Root, who says the tune, made popular by Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Patti Page in the '50s, has been looping non-stop for almost three years. "It’s like having a radio that you just can’t turn off," Root said. Fortunately (or unfortunately?) her personal radio also seems to play "God Save The Queen", "Happy Birthday" and "Auld Lang Syne."

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